Amazon loves this, I'm sure. Outside the regular target audience, a good online sewer will bring in viewers who will watch it to spite the haters and praise the progressive elements of the show (nevermind reconciling this with their anarcho-communist hard line that Amazon and companies like it are the root of all evil, pwning alt-righters is more important) as well as the other end of the retard spectrum, who will dissect every episode into individual frames to prove that it's Jew propaganda and subliminal messaging about the adrenochrome factories beyond the ice wall.

 

Is anyone else disappointed by the look of the Rings we've seen? They look cheap.

 

Amazon knows that engagement is the only thing that matters commercially before the show airs, which is why they've made absolutely zero effort to combat, or really even acknowledge the brigading on the teaser. Get people talking, get people watching, is the only goal right now.

Soon they'll start releasing behind the scenes first looks, they'll wheel out the cast for promos, they'll plaster the posters on every add space they can find. The Amazon Fresh bags are already going out.

I don't believe any of the rings we've seen are the actual Rings. Everything they've said so far indicates they're saving the forging for Season 2 and that Season 1 will end with the Sauron reveal.

 

Ah cool. That assuages some worries!

 

Isn't the graphic on the left concept art for Dragon Age Origins?

 

Is anyone truly upset that the female dwarves aren't truly identical to male dwarves?

 

No

 

I've seen people who are.

 

It's such a weird hill to die on imo. There are textual contradictions in the extended legendarium about it, as Tolkien changed his mind about dwarves a lot over the years. And then there are the Hobbit movies, which show some female dwarves as having beards, and some without. So we've got two sources, one being Tolkien himself, that are decidedly meh on the topic.

I'd say most of the people legitimately complaining about it (i.e. not just glomming onto the hate train for fun, or using the beard rage to disguise what they are really angry about) only have the trilogy as mental reference and are experiencing a knee-jerk effect.

 

And the only line referencing them was a joke.

 

I like the idea of female dwarves looking very like male dwarves to other races as it shows yet another way they are so different to the other races, due to their creation by Aule. But in a tv adaption? I don’t especially care.

 

To be fair, it was a great joke and the only evidence that filmAragorn wasn't dull as mud.

 

Yes.

 

So this is sort of news. About 30 big names from the various Tolkien communities (Corey Olsen, Nerd of the Rings, Prancing Pony, TOR.n, FoF, etc) got invited to see a sneak peek of about 20 minutes of footage, had a q&a with the showrunners, and were allowed to share impressions (positive or negative) sans any and all content spoilers.

Of those who've posted about it, almost all the impressions are glowing.

Corey's (The Tolkien Professor) and TOR.n's takes are probably the most in depth, but NOTR is probably who I trust the most and he was surprisingly positive.

The main takeaways from the footage seem to be:

1. It looks like Jackson's Middle Earth thanks to a big fat budget and John Howe.
2. It sounds like Jackson's Middle Earth thanks to Howard Shore.
3. They didn't get shown enough to really get a firm grasp of story, only disparate, albeit full setpiece scenes.

The main takeaways from the q+a session are:

1. It alleviated a lot of the most common concerns among this group and they feel the show is in good hands.
2. The showrunners are apparently massive Tolkien nerds who went toe-to-toe with everyone in that room in terms of lore knowledge, and who also understand the major themes of Tolkien.
3. The showrunners went through a six month pitch process to both Amazon and the Tolkien Estate before they won out.
4. They are indeed working closely with the Estate to borrow lore necessary to tell a Second Age story.

I won't say my fears are fully alleviated. I remain hyped and cautiously optimistic, but I won't be surprised or heartbroken if it is shit. The situation is pretty similar to WoT showrunners, who had the right intent but massively dropped the ball in the execution.

It does however answer my question as to why these relatively unknown dudes got the job. They had a solid vision and the lore chops / respect required to impress the Estate (and Corey Olsen which is pretty damn impressive).

Whether or not they will be able execute that vision well remains to be seen.

 

Don't give me hope. But fingers crossed

 

Empire seems to be getting the dripfeed now instead of Vanity Fair. That's probably a smart move after all the hullabaloo those articles triggered.

The whole series has been outlined from start to finish.



Celebrimbor (odd choice going for yet another elderly man to play an elf, but he's an excellent actor so whatever):








And some grimy leaks from said magazine issue:











Costuming all actually looks great in set shots when compared to the VF photoshoot. Everyone except the elves are looking suitably Middle Earth filthy.

 

There is just no beating practical effects from Weta workshop. Goddamn.

 

Is that a goblin/orc in a Numenorean helmet? Looks vaguely Gondor-like but Gondor ain't a thing yet.

 

Just my thoughts, but it looks to be one of the elven helmets shown from the Dagor Bragollach scene with Finrod from the trailer. A ton of them seem to be wearing bits and pieces of human/elf-y war spoils.

Edit: Yep it definitely is. It's got the same sigil on the brow.

Edit 2: IGN interviews with production team. Very comforting to hear them talk about this stuff the way Jackson did.